Huw over on Brickset has reported that a theme based on The Lone Ranger movie has been confirmed. We've received no such confirmation, but for some reason I have no doubt that this will happen. In any case, here's the films first teaser for your viewing... let's say pleasure. This theme could potentially have some nice western set pieces and a Lone Ranger figure would be pretty neat, but I'll pass on the bird headed Tonto. It's just a teaser, but the odd thing for me is that I was into it right up until we actually see the titular character and his sidekick at which point the whole thing felt like it hit a huge dramatic shift and that seems like a bad sign. Fingers crossed for everyone involved, but one more question.
Do kids even like westerns anymore?
---
Permalink: http://www.fbtb.net/2012/10/03/the-lone-ranger-saddles-up-in-first-trailer/

I think Johnny Depp has a clause in his Disney contract that stipulates that a LEGO minifigure of his character must be made for each movie project. LEGO & Disney offer Pirates of the Caribbean & Lone Ranger themed sets, but no TRON:Legacy? No TRON: Uprising? TRON, with all its vehicles and emphasis on building and creating, has no licensed LEGO? For shame.

But back on topic, I think the licenses are a great synergy for LEGO and pop-culture. I've little interest in the LEGO themes - Castle, Western, Pirates, but shine them up with elves and orcs, crow headresses, and mermaids, and now I'll look at them. Go figure, it's just a matter of taste?

With LEGO, and the power of imagination, you really don't need licenses at all. You can make your own Aluminum Falcon [sic], your own Black Pearl, your own TRON Recognizer, but isn't it just easier (maybe more satisfying?) to buy a professionally produced set that can be tweaked the way you want?

I'm just glad to get some western themed items again. I think that Lego went with the Lone Ranger license rather than producing a Lego Western line because they are hoping for the increase in sales if there is a potential blockbuster movie. Plus the bad guys from a movie theme tend to be a little more interesting than the regular themes.

I saw the trailer for The Lone Ranger yesterday and I was pretty disappointed. It looks like it will be done like the Sherlock Holmes movies where things are done in a modern way, but with period-piece dressing. (NOTE: I actually like the Holmes movies.) But with TLR it just seems like "fake juice". And with the way they have fashioned Tonto, he reminds me more of the old cult comic/movie character, The Crow, than the original character.

I used to watch TLR as a kid and had serval of the toys. I can't really remember much of the story line or if there were regular villains. I think it was mainly just "do-gooder duo helps victims and foils bad guys' plans" every week.

One puzzling thing about a possible LEGO tie in, is that with LEGO so wary of being tied to violent brands (HALO, etc.), this movie feels like it will have a dark & violent tilt to it, but that is just a guess.

Regarding the comments about Tron:As some have noted, I think there are some cool vehicles to be built, but honestly I thought the movie stunk and that's why I don't think you will see a LEGO tie in. I can't remember what it did in the box office, but I remember thinking based on the hype the movie was a big disappointment and probably didn't match financial targets. IMO it was definitely one of the most disappointing movies I saw that year.

But I thought Prince of Persia was a big disappointment, too, wasn't it? And it got a bunch of sets, despite not having as promising source material (IMHO) as TRON for those sets. Maybe I'm misremembering...

The sets are developed before the movies come out so whether or not the movie does well isn't a factor in it getting sets. Toy Story, LotR and PotC are different because they were able to create sets based on the previously successful films as well as the upcoming sequels, so the box office synergy was expected and it still didn't guarantee the sets or films would be well recieved.

I wonder if there is pressure from Disney to create sets for films they want help marketing to kids in exchange for more potentially lucrative properties like Marvel, Toy Story, etc.

Flynn wrote:Westerns are always awesome.

I wish that was the case, but it is definitely not. I watched more westerns as a child then anyone else I knew, but even then they weren't drawing in kids like they did in the 50's, 60's and to a lesser extent 70's. Now good ones are few and far between and the ones aimed at kids are often so bad (Wild Wild West, Around the World In 80 Days) I'd hesitate to expose a child to them. If any classic character has a chance of bringing the western back to its glory days, it's the Lone Ranger, but that's an uphill battle. If they make this film goofy it will go against the source material, but in any case I simply don't see this being a hit with kids today.

Kids today... *shakes fist*

'Resistance is Futile. We will add your Bricks and Minifigures to our own. Your Bothans will adapt to service us." "I AM the Law!" >> [email protected] <<

Ironically, I actually came out of it rooting for the bad guys for doing suck a kick butt job of the ambush. I actually basically just stopped watching the rest of the movie after that point with my dad and went and played by myself with my toys, recreating the scene. Maybe because it had just been so boring up til that point.

Mister Ed wrote:But I thought Prince of Persia was a big disappointment, too, wasn't it? And it got a bunch of sets, despite not having as promising source material (IMHO) as TRON for those sets. Maybe I'm misremembering...

True, but was PoP a fairly successful video game before the movie?

I think buriedbybricks is probably correct. Good point that the sets are designed before movie's release in anticipation and Disney might be playing the "if you want this, you have to do that" card.